


We Don't Believe What's On TV (Because It's What We Want To See)

by MarvelousAvengfulSlytherin



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Avengers Takes Care Of Their Own, Awesome Maria Hill, Awesome Sharon Carter, Gen, Generation Z Peter Parker, It Takes Two Agents To Keep One Spider Safe, Mentions of Mysterio - Freeform, Peter Parker Has Panic Attacks, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home, Pseudo Mother-Son Relationship, Road Trip, Spider-Man: Far From Home (Movie) Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2020-06-23 18:22:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19706920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvelousAvengfulSlytherin/pseuds/MarvelousAvengfulSlytherin
Summary: Sharon Carter & Maria Hill have only one job right now: hiding Peter Parker.Peter Parker thought everything would mellow out after his vacation in Europe. Apparently not as his identity is thrown out in the open with lies destroying his image as Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.Or Sharon & Maria plays mother & aunt to an anxiety and PTSD-riddled super teen. Peter tries to keep everything from exploding on the outside. All while they run from the police hunting Spider-Man down and the Avengers try to do damage control as well as save Peter from the fate that Quentin threw him into.





	1. it ain't me, i ain't no fortunate son

**Author's Note:**

> Wasn't going to write this at first considering I'm working on another MCU fic buuuut my will is not that strong and now I'm plotting this out... Plus who doesn't want to see a road trip featuring agents running away from the cops while protecting an innocent teenager? So this was born, I'll try updating as much as I can. 
> 
> Title is from Twenty One Pilot's Song, We Don't Believe What's On TV which I thought was pretty fitting for this story. That and I've had this song playing on repeat while writing the first chapter. 
> 
> The chapter title is from the song Fortunate Son by Creedence Clearwater Revival, which is also used in the chapter. More song lyrics related chapter titles to come (some from the 60s to modern albums, get ready for that)

"He needs someone to watch his back, to protect him! So why not a witch?" Was Wanda Maximoff's response to the big question.

What to do about the Spider-Man situation and more importantly-What to do about the fugitive that was Peter Parker at the moment.

The sixteen-year-old in question was sitting there-Maria could tell he was zoning out but not on purpose but because he was tired. He looked tired. The past twenty-four hours for the kid was hell, as eloquently as Maria could put it.

Maria found out about this on the news, which sent SHIELD into damage control trying to find what the hell was going on. At around that time, the Avengers with Wanda Maximoff taking control was contacting Maria as she was driving to the compound. Happy had driven the poor kid to the compound where Wanda had been getting ready to help Sam and Bucky on some mission. That was derailed when Happy erratically explained the situation that was unfolding just as Maria was getting the Agents to head a squadron for this storm. Peter had just his Spider-Man suits, Happy had smuggled them before the police arrived the small apartment that his aunt May and him had lived in for years. When he had gotten to the Compound, Peter's cell was destroyed by Wanda ("Precautions," The witch later told Maria) Happy got ahold of Maria, she cut him off telling him that she and SHIELD were going to be there soon. Just as another segment of the Daily Bugle with a half ranting-yelling Jonah Jameson, SHIELD agents led by Maria arrived on the scene.

"He can't stay here," Was Maria's words that sounded cold but to her, they were rationally the truth in this tense room. It was the truth-Peter Parker couldn't stay here in the Avengers Compound forever, it was the next obvious place that the Feds were going to look for soon as she explained to the Avengers. "He'll have to go on the run. I'll be going with him-" She was cut off by Wanda who was pointing a finger at her.

"Then you'll need back up," SHe said. "Let me go with you Hill."

"If the Avengers are seen with him it could send a message to everyone. A message that screams hostility and not the good message that you guys need at the moment. Your reputation is doing well right now, we don't need it going down the toilet again," SHe told the young woman.

"Maria is right," Sam Wilson's voice cut through the room on the conference call that they had him patched through. "All the Avengers can do for Spider-Man officially is be neutral. But behind the scene, well that's a different story. Hill, do you think some of your agents can work with Scott Lang to figure out to clear Parker's name?" He asked her.

Maria nodded. "They can."

"It's all we can do right now for him Wanda," Sam told her. His voice sounded sad, which was how this situation was looking for Parker at the moment. It was a horrible and sad situation for the teen.

Heartbreakingly sad.

* * *

They would have their identities changed, to a mother and son.

Lauren Seberg and her teenage son, Ronan Seberg.

"I'll see if I can come and visit you with Dr. Stranger," Wanda said as the car was finished being packed by Banner and some of the agents. Two duffle bags with stuff for them to survive on the run. Happy was on the other side where Peter sat, telling him about his Aunt May.

"She'll be safe with Pepper. She'll be safe there kid," He told Parker that. "I promise. Now, keep your head down, have Edith turned off, the suits will be kept safe here in the compound. Be safe out there, Agent Hill will look out for you. She's one of the best. Your name will be cleared and you'll come back home, Peter. You'll come back home soon." He tried to sound confident but Hill could see the worried looks that passed over Happy as Peter mumbled.

"Once were are there, make sure no one follows you, Wanda," Maria told the young witch.

"Good luck," Wanda said softly. She looked straight at Peter. "Both of you. Good luck."

"We will," Maria said before starting the car, a grey bulletproof Audi before driving away from the Avengers Compound in the dead of night. She zoomed away, as she got farther away the compound could be seen as merely a tiny grey blob in the rearview mirror to Maria.

Cars came and went as Maria drove away from the state of New York.

The plan that they developed was to meet Sharon Carter in Maine, where Bucky and Sam would get them out of the United States. They would be traveling to Houlton, Maine to be exact, where the boys would meet them. Meanwhile, her agents that were stationed in Avengers Compound, they along with the Avengers would be doing damage control and try to clear up Parker's name.

Her mission, on the other hand, would be to protect Parker, live and safe to be exact. Speaking of...

The sixteen-year-old was wearing a grey hoodie with a big red A in the front of the grey sweater. The logo for the Avengers. The blue jeans stood out with the grey along with his messy hair and the sunglasses that Stark left for the kid. He was quiet as she drove, never speaking and she wasn't doing anything to talk either. Maria kept her attention back onto the road. Once they officially left the state, they wouldn't stop until they at least hi Lowe, Massachusetts. There, Maria would contact Sharon. She hoped that Sam could get there to Maine soon once she contacted Sharon, if not the plan would be screwed.

And if the plan was screwed, then they were screwed.

It was around 10:03 pm, an hour after Maria and Peter left. They were still driving on the highway to Massachusetts when Maria noticed a couple of things. Well, two things actually.

One, it was too damn quiet.

Two, she was hungry and she could tell that Parker was hungry as well.

She was still on the New York State Thruway Berkshire Connector. As she drove, Maria fiddled around with the screen on the Audi touch screen until the apple logo was on and the music logo was there. Maria was glad that her phone was connected through Bluetooth. She went to the radio station on the app and played 80s music. Putting the volume on a reasonable pace, her eyes were feeling less drowsy as the song blared to life in the car. Parker took off the glasses as she hummed the song.

"You listen to Prince before?" She asked the teenager.

He finally looked at her for what seemed like the first time today and shook his head. "Is this the guy singing the song? The one playing right now?" He asked. Maria chuckled and nodded yes, it was indeed Prince that they were listening to. She moved the car into another lane, away from the looming truck in front of them.

As Little Red Corvette ended, another took its place. This time it was Manic Monday and Maria couldn't stop herself from singing along to the song, partially because it helped keep her awake. (They really needed to stop soon to refuel) Parker drummed his fingers on the window to the beat f the song as she drove down the highway.

She wondered what he was thinking.

* * *

They stopped for gas and snacks, never staying longer than what they needed before speeding away.

Parker changed the station. It was now midnight as they made it into Lowell, Massachusetts not far from Boston. It would have taken them two hours but traffic was brutal. Now it would be another five hours to reach Maine. They would get there around six, maybe seven in the morning if traffic continued this way. The teen changed the 80s station (it was playing Rock You Like a Hurricane) to the NPR radio station.

The first thing they heard- _"Still no sign or any whereabouts of fugitive Peter Parker, known publicly as Spider-Man. A nation-wide manhunt led by the NYPD and the FBI is starting as tips keep pouring in to find the criminal that was responsible for murdering the hero known as Mysterio. The Avengers have formally stayed quiet during this controversy so far about the youngest member. Pepper Potts-Stark, Tony Stark's widow as issued a statement regarding the thing as " **a disgusting lie to have the media ruin the life of a child."** We will cover more of this story as we get more information. This is NPR Radio." _

Parker stayed quiet once again. There was a pause before the NPR lady talked about Congress and the New York governor's stance on the Spider-Man controversy as the media was dubbing it.

"They're dumb," SHe said out loud cutting the silence that was affecting the kid. She briefly turned down the volume and continued to speak. "The media likes to do this, jump into this like a shark smelling blood. They're just fanning the flame especially that asshole Jonah Jameson isn't doing anything except inciting panic and mistrust on the wrong heroes. The Avengers and SHIELD are going to find out the truth and once they do, your name is going to be cleared. Then that asshole Jameson can shove it, right up his ass preferably." She muttered making Parker crack a smile.

"When?" Parker asked her.

"What?"

He repeated the question. "When? When will the truth be free?"

"Hopefully," Maria said to him, the grip on the leather steering wheel going tighter that her knuckles were turning white. "Hopefully soon, kid."

Maria did not know when 'soon' would be but Parker wearily accepted it as if he could tell that even she wasn't feeling that optimistic. But she was trying, for his sake. Instead of asking any more questions Parker switched to the 2000's radio station, Britney Spear's voice came through. _Oops, I Did It Again_ started to play on the speakers.

As Britney Speared continue to sing, Maria had to wonder how the Avengers and her own agents were going to find the truth. Because truth be told, Maria had no idea how they were going to clear Parker's name from what he told them about Quentin's plan. But the Avengers and SHIELD were the only options that Parker had at the moment that could bypass shit and get to the truth, and clear his name.

* * *

"Parker," Maria said. "I'd like you to meet Sharon Carter. She'll be joining us... on the run."

Sharon, on her part, gave the teen a friendly smile. They sat across from her on an old bed in a motel that Sharon had acquired once making it to Massachusetts. Once they drove close to Lowell, Maria called Sharon. She gave them the address, Parker punching in the coordinates on the screen and Maria furiously drove them to the shitty looking motel in Lowell. They got there around one in the morning and barely got out of the car, her legs screaming as she and Parker walked up to the number door 13 (irony) where Sharon was. They weren't going to stay for long, Sharon would check out and drive them to Maine.

Sharon explained that after they left Lowell, they would drive all the way to Maine, more importantly to Houlton International Airport in Maine where Sam and Bucky would be waiting for them to take them to a secure location. "Fed or cops won't find you there kid," She reassuringly told Parker. He still looked worried. "Where exactly are you taking me?"

"Wakanda," Sharon answered.


	2. if i was you, i would run for your life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> headcanons for this story: Maria drinks coffee like its water, she cannot live without it. Peter knows old DCOM songs from memory, so get ready for a shit ton of old school songs from my (and many others) childhood memories as this story progresses. 
> 
> the song lyrics used for this chapter's title is from Run For Your Life by 6 Day Riot
> 
> kudos and comments very much appreciated here folks. enjoy the chapter!

Parker sat in the backseat, Maria sat shotgun as Sharon drove them to Maine. 

They stopped to get some coffee from Starbucks and continue their drive. Parker, once he got a frappe in hand, was trying to pick a new music station on Sharon's phone to play. He finally went with 2010s radio station.

"I love this song," He said as he turned up the music slightly more. Sharon gave him a smile, looking at him through the rearview mirror before looking at the road.

"Who sings this?" Maria asked blowing the steam from her coffee. Parker didn't answer too busy head bopping to the music and mouth too full of chocolate croissant that Sharon bought for him. Maria looked at the screen on the Audi, reading the song called Pompeii from a band called Bastille. 

When Bastille ended, Lady Gaga took its place sending both Parker and Sharon to loudly sing along to Applause. Maria shook her head, deciding now was a good time to use those headphones she had and put them to good use. Once placing them in, she found the NPR radio station, pressing play and drowning out both Agent 13 and Spider-Man's off-key rendition of Lady Gaga's song. 

_"This is NPR News, live from Washington, D.C."_ The voice said. Maria put the volume higher as Parker and Sharon continued with their karaoke. It was muffled only for the commercial to end and the voice came back announcing the NPR. Maria listened. 

_"Hello, welcome back to the NPR Radio, I'm your host, Valerie Hale. More news coming in from New York City as the manhunt for sixteen-year-old Peter Parke continues into its second day. Joining me as always is my co-host Xavier Day and our special guest, Daily Bugle morning host, Jonah Jameson. Welcome Jonah to the NPR Radio, now what can you tell us about the developments into this manhunt?"_

_Oh god_ , Maria thought to herself as Jonah Jameson's voice started mentioning the manhunt on Spider-Man. If she wasn't desperate to listen to more of the news, she could have chucked her phone out of the window into oncoming traffic.

Xavier was the one to point out to Jonah, _"There still hasn't been any sightings of Peter Parker, both on foot or web-swinging. Where do you think he could be? Well, that's one of the many questions that has been plaguing the minds of law enforcement and the public since the video unleashed all over social media. Today the FBI has mentioned that Peter Parker could be going to Canada or Mexico, maybe down much southern to Brazil or Peru. Not only that but it has come up short in tracking his phone, so far nothing has been up."_

_Jonah retaliated. "There have been many speculations, one that I agree is that the Avengers have been hiding him." Valerie pointed out to the seasoned reporter that, "The Avengers have denied harboring the fugitive and the FBI did clear them today of doing any fort of thing. Still, they are saying that they will stay neutral in this and allow law enforcement to do their jobs."_

She could hear Jameson scoffed In disbelief through her headphones. She wished she could throttle him through the tiny screen of her phone or shoot him.

Maria stopped the live stream and once she did, found herself in a live concert between Parker and Sharon. Sharon sang the chorus to Good Life while Parker held his Starbucks cup high in the air as he waved his arms side-to-side, singing along. Maria merely shook her head at the sight.

When they arrived in Houlton, Maine it was already late in the afternoon, past it. They made it to the International Airport at around 2:37. After parking the car, they got their stuff out, Maria telling Parker to put the shades on. He reluctantly gave the glasses that Tony gave to him, to Sharon who promised that she would give them back once they were on the jet. She told Maria that Sam was waiting at the hanger 32 and that they needed to go. 

Sharon handed them their passports and an ID for Maria. "You got a fake one too?" Parker asked Sharon. 

"I do. Can't let the two of you play dress up. Meet your aunt, kid." Sharon gave him a grin, one that he returned with ease. "Let's go."

They checked in quickly stating that they had a private jet ready for them. Once formalities were spoken, Lauren Seberg, her son Ronan and Lauren's sister, Peggy Seberg.

Parker played with his hair, tugging the rather unfamiliar blonde curls he was sporting while borrowing Maria's headphones and phone. They had died their hair using a non-permanent dye Sharon had found in Lowell before they arrived. It was a dirty blonde look for them both but it worked to mask Peter's true hair color and the shades did so as well, making him look like a teenager that was being dragged to a family vacation by his family members. 

He tugged them again and Maria placed a hand on his shoulders. She told him after helping him dry his hair in the hotel that the dye would wash off in a couple of days. He needed another disguise right now. Parker gave her a small smile and stopped tugging his hair. 

Once being checked out, they were led to the plane and left alone. Good, the simpler the better for Maria and more so for Parker. They walked out to where the white jet was. They walked towards it only to find themselves underneath a dome and a black plane taking the white jet's place. Standing by the plane was Bucky Barnes.

His hair was down, wearing a dark blue shirt, jeans, and a leather jacket as they approached the ex-assassin. Sharon shook his hand, giving Maria a nod and greeting Parker with a smile. He looked wary at him but still smiled politely at the older man. "I fought you in the airport," Parker said suddenly. Bucky gave him a grin, "Yeah, you fought good kid."

They quickly got on the plane. They could talk about that old fight later.

"Welcome aboard Air Wakanda ladies and gentlemen," Sam said as he closed the door and started up the plane. Once that was on, he got them into the sky, flying away from the airport, unsuspectingly. They sat down, Parker sat next to Maria.

"This is it then?" He asked her quietly as Sharon and Bucky caught up.

"Yeah," She said. 

* * *

The flight was going to be long but at least she wasn't driving anymore. So it was a welcomed change for Maria. Parker finally fell asleep, he dozed off a couple of times whenever they were on the road but always was awake. As if he couldn't let himself be asleep, not when people were after him. So she wasn't annoyed when his head was on her shoulder, he apologized when he woke up startled by the slight turbulence only for Maria to wave off his apology. "I don't mind." She told him. "Get some rest, we'll be in Wakanda soon." He did. 

Once he finally dozed off again, Bucky came with a blanket putting on the kid and handed Maria her second cup of coffee today. She needed it. 

Parker mumbled something in his sleep, brows furrowing as if his dreams were a bother or distressing him in some way. Maria gently ran her fingers through his hairs, claming him and it slightly did the work noticing his face relaxed a bit. She wondered what he could be dreaming? Probably nothing good... She turned her attention away from the sleeping teenager to look at Sharon and Bucky who were tracking the news on the satellite holographic. 

It was the same thing that Maria had listened to on the NPR Radio hours ago. 

"Why are we even watching this?" Bucky muttered. "It's just them spewing crap all over the poor kid."

Maria answered from where she sat. "If you want to stay ahead of the game, you have to watch the whole thing unfold live. Then you go ahead of your enemies." Sharon kept her attention to the screen while Bucky looked at Maria. "Very cryptic stuff Agent Hill."

"I try."

The news told them about the still ongoing manhunt for Parker, so far bringing up nothing on his whereabouts that seemed to frustrate the police but brought relief to the group that had the kid. The only thing they had was Mysterio's words telling them so and the damn video as their "proof". The video kept on playing showing Peter asking for execution, commanding the robots to "kill" Mysterio. 

The real question Maria had and said out loud was, "Who sent it in?"

"What?" Sharon asked her superior. 

Maria looked at the CNN headline that just read: **16-YEAR-OLD KILLER OF SHORT-LIVED HERO, MYSTERIO IS STILL AT LARGE.**

She pointed at the tape, the same video Quentin Beck has seemingly manipulated and had the world eat it out of his dead hands. The same one that has been playing for almost two days now. 

"Who sent in the video to the media? More importantly, who had it?" She asked her companions. 

"That dick of a reporter. Jonah Jameson, he said it was sent in anonymously to the Daily Bugle." Sharon stated. Bucky scratched his beard with his metal hand. The ex-SHEILD Agent continued with her hypothesis. "It had to be someone who had access to this footage. Mysterio couldn't have been the only one to work alone in this."

It clicked with Maria, feeling like some lightbulb just went off in her head. "He wasn't."

"Come again?" Bucky asked. 

She repeated herself, firmly this time. " _He wasn't._ Parker, the kid, he told me and the Avengers back at the Compound that Mysterio was working with people who felt that Tony was dismissive towards them. That Tony needed to be brought down a few pegs. They just really hated their boss, more so Beck than any other. This means that the rest of Mysterio's group is still out there."

"If they were the ones who sent in the video," Bucky said. "Then they have the real footage, the unedited version meaning that the kid's name could be cleared."

Maria looked at Bucky. "Contact the Avengers now."

Same came in just as Bucky got ahold of a confused Scott Lang on the screen in the conference room. He disappeared to go get the rest of the team and the Agents. 

"Shouldn't you be piloting?" Sharon asked him. Sam gave her a laid back grin. "Autopilot."

"How's the kid doing?" He asked Maria. "He's doing well, resting at the moment." She gestured to Parker's sleeping form. Sam nodded and then turned his attention to what the trio was doing as they waited for Scott. They informed Sam on their investigation with the video just as Scott returned with the rest of the team and the agents. Once they were there on the screen, the theory was told and the whole team was seemingly sparked to life. 

"We find these people and get the evidence to clear his name," Wanda said, hope filling in her tone. "We can do it. We have to for Peter."

Maria nodded her head at the young woman. "Good. It's important for all of us and Parker for this to not leak to the NYPD or the media until we gather the evidence to clear his name. The last thing we need is for this to drag the Avengers down once again, this is the kid's chance."

"I'll ask Pepper to pull up names of ex-employees that worked at Stark Industries before Beck's death. From there we'll track those from the list." Rhodey said. "They'll have to be people that lead some vendetta against Tony," Scott said. "Should be easy to shrink down to get more info."

"Do it however you can. Search this guy's past, leave nothing behind, especially his time at Stark Industries. We have a chance here, let's take it. Keep me updated on this and be ahead of the news, more importantly, the FBI. SHIELD, I'll be needing you guys to follow strict orders-if they get too close to where the kid is, leade them away on a goose chase. Enough time to give us time to gather evidence, suspects and to clear his name." She told the group, strictly like Nick did to the Avengers.

Is this how Nick felt when he had to rally the Avengers during that fight against Ultron years ago? Because it felt like that to Maria at this very moment, very life and death scenarios running through her mind. 

When the call ended, Maria looked at her empty cup of coffee that she had held during that call. "Is there more left?" She asked Sam. "I'm going to need another one, preferably with a shot of vodka."

"How about rum?" Sam asked her.

"I'll take it."

* * *

_"You make me wanna jump to the rhythm and step to the music!"_

"He makes me wanna jump out of this plane," Sam muttered. Next, to him, Maria snorted with laughter into her coffee laced rum. "I regret giving him that iPod touch now. I should have thrown it out of the plane."

"It's not trackable and gives him something to do besides looking at the news. So I don't mind a little off-key singing from him but he is getting better from our last Karaoke." Sharon mused with a smile.

Maria did agree with her friend. The kid needed some normalcy in this craziness. "How far are we from Wakanda?"

"Not long now. We should be entering the barrier soon actually Maria." He told her. 

_"All in together, let's show how we do it, step to the rhythm and dance to the music, all in together we shine!"_

Sam groaned quietly as if Peter's singing was slowly killing him. When they arrived, it would be around 8 am in Wakanda, both her and Parker would have to adjust to the time difference. "Here we go." Sam alerted her. "Agent Hill, Agent Carter, welcome to Wakanda."

She heard Bucky's steps and Parker's footsteps as he observed the dome they were getting close to as if they were about to crash it. Instead, they flew inside it, disguising Wakanda. "Here we go." She heard Bucky say. 

Instantly, the shimmer of the hologram that disguised the city dissolved revealing the city once they passed through it. The country was breathtaking as Maria saw it, Sharon and Peter were also looking at the hidden city with awe. 

Sam turned the plane towards the building where he was to land it on a platform. Maria could see people waiting for them. They went to the back as Sam landed and opened the door to let them out. Bucky went first, followed by Sharon and then it was Sam. Parker still looked anxious as Maria glanced at him. 

"It's going to be okay," She firmly told Parker. "T'Challa was more than happy to keep you here safe and sound when we had that conference call with the rest of the Avengers. He wants to help Parker... Peter, did you listen to me? He wants to help. Okay?" She realized this was the first time she called him "Peter", not "Parker". 

He looked at her, his eyes filled with too many emotions. It reminded Maria of Tony, Steve, and Natasha. Emotions that shouldn't be held by the teen tht stood next to her. He swallowed and Maria placed a hand on his right shoulder. "You're going to be safe here. As long as I'm here, you're safe." She'll be damned if anything was going to happen to the kid, she would not see him in the Raft, no way. 

Peter nodded his head. The anxiety was still there, it will probably never leave, Maria knew well but it seemed to have quietd down with her words. For now. 

Together they walked out to meet the king of Wakanda.

* * *

There had been nothing but buzz throughout the beginning of the school year regarding the notable absence of Peter Parker. 

MJ didn't believe the stuff the news spewed almost every day, especially the Daily Bugle. Not about Peter killing Mysterio with those robots. She knew that it wasn't true, none of it was but some people did believe it. Like Brad Davis who kept going around telling a group of people that, "I knew he was up to something but nobody believed me on that trip!"

Because Spider-Man was a teen that had superhuman abilities that could, in Jonah Jameson's words, "could cause damages on innocent civilians like that witch the destroyed Lagos!"

(Her name was the _Scarlet Witch_ , MJ said snarkily in her mind. She was fond of the female Avenger, one of her heroes along with the late _Black Widow_ and the newest one, _Captain Marvel_ )

"MJ, you there?" Ned asked her, making her jump. He was standing next to her, with Betty Brant. Ned had stuck to her since the beginning of their Junior year and she to him. Betty came close towards the end of the first week of the new school year. Then there was Flash, he was a defendant of Spider-Man but had come around to their small group one day in the library during homeroom. 

"Is he Spider-Man?" Flash asked in a whisper, his eyes serious. Ned showed him a video of Peter messing around on a rooftop with the suit swinging back and forth, Ned's voice cheering him on. Flash left. 

The next day, he brought his laptop and a notebook. On it, he scribbled: **Operation Save P.P.**

"I want to help," He muttered to them. They let him into their weird yet small group.

MJ was surprised that he hadn't written Penis but didn't say anything. They met in the library under the disguise of chatting about homework and teen stuff, not wondering where Peter was or where his aunt was. Ned knew because of course, he knew. May was fond of him as MJ was fond of him and Betty (and slowly growing fond of Flash no matter how annoying he could be)

"We should go and see her," MJ said. "Let's skip school, they won't miss us here." 

Before they left, MJ broke into Peter's locker and with the help of the others, they got Peter's stuff placing it into an empty gym bag Peter left in his locker. They would give this to his aunt. 

She would be right, they wouldn't miss them but would notify their parents. Their lie would be that they went to get some food and they did later, getting some from Popeyes, heading to Flash's empty home. They would need a private place to contact Peter's Aunt. 

From there, MJ had no idea what they would do. What could they do? 

"We could make sure his aunt is doing okay," Ned said firmly. "We're just kids, the Avengers, they're going to help Peter, I know it. But we can help May, just visiting her can help. That's what we can do for Peter, making sure his aunt is okay." They considered and Ned called May. After the polite talk, May Parker told Ned to hang up. He did, confused before receiving a text from another number.

_Police are keeping tabs along with FBI. This is my address. -May_

MJ quickly wrote it down and told Ned to keep that number that way they can keep contacting May. Must be another phone,MJ thought as she handed the paper to Flash to put into his GPS. 

They got an address and left to go visit May Parker.


	3. I'm driving here I sit, cursing my government

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the lack of updating!! It has been a YEAR since I updated but here I am and I have more time cause of Quarantine! So here is the next installment of this!

"Thank you once again T'Challa," Maria told the King as he gave them a tour. He was currently leading them to their apartment in the palace. Peter could not stop looking around as the adults talked tuning them out in favor of just looking at Wakanda.

Everything about the country mesmerized him. The technology especially.

They turned another corner and was now in front of their apartment. Bucky and Sam left as Shuri pulled Bucky away from the group talking about more programing for his arm. Sam just shook his head and said something about, "Having to pry those two from each other." Before pulling a face as he followed the Princess and Barnes. T'Challa shook his head as Sharon muttered, "I knew it."

The apartment was bigger than the one he shared with May. T'Challa told them that the cooks are more than happy to bring any dish and that food was already stocked in but were allowed to go down to the city and find other things for themselves if needed. Peter thanked him and T'Challa smiled kindly. "Maybe once I'm done with a meeting, you and I can go sparring? You fought well on the battlefield, I'd like to see how well you can handle the Black Panther."

Peter grinned. "You're on." T'Challa clapped his hand, rubbing them enthusiastically. He left, telling Peter to suit up for tomorrow.

He took his luggage and went to the bedroom since Maria got the bigger one. This one was bigger than his own back home. He placed his backpack on the desk and the duffle bag on the bed, taking out his clothes and putting it in a drawer. Maria peeked her head inside just as Peter flopped on the bed.

"Hey," She said to him. He responded with a muffled hello. "I'm going to cook something for us to eat. Shower, you need it." He did as he was told.

When he got out, the sound of the TV playing was on. He saw Maria chopping something while also turning her attention to the TV, Peter did not recognize the show as it was quickly changed by Maria. He sat down on the seat in front of the Island counter and twisted to look at the television. Meanwhile, Maria was pulling her attention from the food to the TV as she finally found the show to put on.

"Alright, I made spaghetti with some salad on the side."

Peter helped himself to a plate that Maria passed to him and after piling on his food, they moved to the couch. Maria was in a pair of black sweats and a SHIELD t-shirt that must have been a size large but Peter wasn't going to ask. She clicked the remote still trying to find a show for both of them to watch.

"What do you like to watch?" She asked him as she put the remote down and stabbed her salad. The balsamic dressing oozed a bit. Peter twirled his fork between the pasta, wrapping it around the utensil. He shrugged. "Sometimes shows, other times cartoons."

He ducked his head down waiting for some mocking words. Instead, all he got was a raised curious look from the older woman. "Which are?"

Peter blinked. "Uh, well... there's Phineas and Ferb, Steven Universe, Amphibia which came out during the whole universe being dusted, oh and Ducktales." At the mention of the last cartoon, Maria's eyebrows rose up. "Ducktales? Like the 1980's version? They still show that one?"

Peter shook his head. "No, they rebooted it. It's pretty good, the cast is amazing too!" Maria looked intrigued by it but continued with the questions on shows.

Again, Peter shrugged. "Me and Aunt May watch Modern Family. She watches some crime shows like Law and Order or NCIS. Sometimes I watch it with her. Um, there's The Haunting of Hill House, Game of Thrones, there are also old shows I watch like Friends and BH90210."

Maria smiled slightly. "I remember watching those shows. I haven't finished Game of Thrones, left off on the fourth season. I was going to watch the Crown and the Sopranos, maybe some late-night shows like Last Week Tonight. That's all I watch if I have time after work, kid. If I'm feeling nostalgic, I'll go on a Degrassi binge."

Peter's eyes lit up as he remembered one show. "Have you heard of this one cartoon, Avatar?" Maria shook her head and Peter asked for the remote. "You wanna watch it?" Maria shrugged as she got up to get some wine. "Sure, let's watch it."

He found it on Amazon Prime, punching in Maria's account as she told him. His heart sank as he realized it wasn't free but Maria brushed it off and bought the three seasons. As the first episode started, he turned to Maria as she sipped some red wine she had found in the cabinet. "What's Degrassi?"

She choked on the wine and turned to him. "The best Canadian show. What's Avatar?" She playfully countered back. Peter grinned slightly as he pointed to the show as Katara's voice told the story of the war. "The best cartoon of all time."

* * *

When he woke up, Peter got dressed. Maria was already up, wearing a workout outfit as she tied her hair in a ponytail, the TV blared with the news.

 _ **"- as m** **ore people have come to the defense of the outlaw Spider-Man,"**_ Jameson said, a frown marring his face as he spoke. _**"From an old lady who gave the outlaw a churro to classmates of the vigilante teen."**_

Peter perked up on that and so did Maria as she turned the volume up. There on the TV was Flash Thompson and Betty. Behind them were crowds of teens that Peter recognized from school.

"Yeah I know Peter," Betty said in her own TV voice she used whenever she talked about announcements at school. "He's a good person and I know he wouldn't kill Mysterio unless that creep was trying to hurt everyone. Peter Parker is a good person and so is Spider-Man!" Behind her a ruckus of cheers followed, mostly students with signs that read, **SPIDER-MAN IS INNOCENT!** or **SUCK ON IT JAMESON**. Peter saw more as the cameras panned to the sea of teens outside his school. **THE AVENGERS WOULDN'T LET THIS HAPPEN! BRING SPIDER-MAN JUSTICE!** or **SECRETARY ROSS CALLED, HE WANTS HIS BRAIN BACK DAILY BUGLE!** or even, **I'M TIRED OF THIS, WHERE'S THE SNAP WHEN YOU NEED TO WIPE OUT THE DAILY BUGLE?** Another one even read with a picture of Jameson's work-place, The Daily Bugle on it with the sign reading- **OUR EXPECTATIONS FOR YOU WERE LOW BUT HOLY FUCK!**

Maria snorted as she took notices of the anti-Jameson signs and pro-Spidey ones on TV. "Looks like the people still like Spider-Man," Maria said giving him a rare smile. "Your classmates are on your side which is what is pissing Jameson off."

As the camera continued to pan to the sea of students, Peter heard Jameson speak up. _**"These kids are on the wrong side of history. Just because they worship Tony Stark, does not mean it should be alright for them to worship Spider-Man all the same! They ignore the true facts, which is that they are supporting a killer!"**_

Peter turned off the TV before he could hear Jameson say anything else.

After breakfast, Maria and Peter walked to the training room, on one of her legs was a gun strapped there inside the holster. He asked Maria to a warm-up spar before T'Challa came by and she agreed. They found the training room all alone. Maria told him to start on stretches and he did while wearing the suit. After the stretching, she began to teach him.

Instruction after instruction, Maria took into account his ability to sense danger before it happened. "Like a Spider-sense?" She asked him. Peter nodded. It was better than his power being called, _Peter-tingle_. The gun factored in as well as he deflected her multiple times.

"Spider-sense sound way cooler," Peter said as he flipped away from Maria's attack. "I'm coining it, Agent Maria."

* * *

The Avengers Compound had too many agents and very little sleep.

"You need to sleep," Murmured Stephen Stranger who sat next to her meditating while Wanda kept her search for whatever cronies Mysterio had before his death.

Wanda shook her head. She will sleep when Peter is brought back home, safe and sound. Until then, sleep could wait.

They found multiple people, all of them worked under Tony Stark's company and who were bitter about their dead boss. But they weren't part of Mysterio's gang, meaning all the others were still out there. They did find information and identities which the agents told Hill about. Now it was time to find people, get answeres but it was tedious for them as they gathered evidence as the media hounded and shredded Peter's reputation. Coulson and May had already gotten multiple teams to bring the culprits in as the last time they were ever seen was in London. They seemed to have separated so SHIELD had a maneuver themselves quietly to capture them. So far it was only a matter of time but time was not evading them as the Fed had no idea where Peter had vanished which was good on their part. 

it did not help that the media was still stirring up a major frenzy over the man-hunt. Both sides of the media were stupid and overall dramatic in their coverage so much that it was giving the Avengers a headache. 

"Nothing so far," Wanda muttered. How hard was it to find them? They had them, they just needed to just spring the trap and take them back here. 

Her thoughts strayed to the young teen. She wondered how he was holding up? Going on the run could take its toll on even the most toughest of people, Wanda should know, she had to do that for a few years. Wanda was determined to bring Peter home, she was his teammate and a part of her, a small part saw him as the youngest of this family of heroes. A brother, something Wanda had not had in over seven years. 

She lost one brother, Wanda was not going to lose another one.


	4. this time tomorrow, where will we be? on a spaceship somewhere sailing across an empty sea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> title of this chapter is from the song, this time tomorrow by the kinks.

In the morning, Peter and T'Challa circled one another on the matted floor. As if they were ready to see who would strike first. From the sidelines, Maria watched silently while she listened to the news. Peter noticed she did that a lot, she had her reasons which was to keep track of what the media was saying about him along with the police. To keep ahead of the game as Maria put it bluntly. Why did she call it a game? She did not see it but used that metaphor for the situation...

T'Challa lunged and Peter who's senses kicked in and dogged the incoming attack. Peter sent a few webs at the king of Wakanda which made him stick to the floor. He shot a web and hauled himself to the roof as T'Challa ripped himself free. 

They fought for a while longer until finally, Peter had somehow gotten T'Challa hanging upside down in a cacoon of the web. After helping the king, T'Challa clapped him on the back. 

"You fought well!" He said to the young teen. Peter was happy that his face was covered because he was blushing at the praise. Maria nodded in approval. 

But...

"You'll need to learn more hand-to-hand combat," Maria said to him on their way back to their apartment. "We'll start tomorrow at six."

It was something to do, Peter wasn't complaining. Better than doing nothing in Wakanda as a fugitive of the United States.

The suit he wore was the only one he took with him on the run, leaving behind the metal one Tony made for him. He threw the spider suit in the hamper to clean it later when he got out of the shower, dressed in a pair of grey sweatpants and a SHIELD t-shirt that Sharon had somehow given to him the day before. She told him that it was a present from the SHIELD family to him and that she knew he did not have that many clothes to take it and he did, grateful for her generosity. When he showed Maria, she cracked a smile and shook her head. 

He and Maria had not gotten to explore Wakanda but that would change when Maria said they were going for an outing. 

"We can't stay here all day," Maria said as she put her hair in a ponytail and grabbed her bag. Peter was just excited. 

They walked around with Nakia, who was more than happy to take their guest on a tour of her home and the marketplaces. Peter with being ripped from his routine was in desperate need of one so when he saw a bookstore Nakia pointed out, he was happy to enter it with both women.

Rows and rows of books greeted them and so did the shopkeeper, a young woman who looked to be about in her twenties. "Hello," She greeted them. Peter waited for the eyes to go wide and the cops to come barrelling into the store but nothing happened. She had a kind smile as she told them to look around and that there was a 50% off classics.

Peter wandered over to the fiction area, mostly the YA section where authors from Wakanda and from the West were piled together, a mixture of colors. New books that Peter never knew probably from the snap that occurred six years ago. He picked one out, a book from the Hunger Games Trilogy that Peter had read years ago. Walking away and into the fiction aisle, he saw a couple of Stephen King books and grabbed three. Further into he went to the biographical section, nonfiction. The only nonfiction book Peter had read was on Tony Stark and that was years ago. But one caught his eye, it had the name Kennedy on it. _Must be about the president,_ Peter thought as he grabbed it. 

Reading the page bind of it, he read the plot. Shrugging to himself, he took it. As he found Maria, he realized two things.

One, he had _five books_ in his hands.

Two, _how was he supposed to pay for this?_

He must have shown his panicked face because when Maria looked at him, she reassured him that she would pay for their books. She had one book with her, not as many as Peter. One that Peter saw was called _Blonde_.

"Didn't peg you for a Stephen King fan, kid?" Maria said to him.

Peter shrugged. "Need to be in another world than the real one. Why not King's novels? And this one?" He showed her the green book. He had a smile on his face. "Why not go back to Panem?"

"Not getting any Twilight books?" She joked. 

Peter made a face and Maria laughed. "So just these books then? Do you want to look around, see if anything else catches your eye?"

He shook his head. They went to the cash register and Maria paid for the six books. Peter did not look at the price but helped Maria with the bag full of books. They went around the market, to different stores as Maria wanted Peter some more clothes as he only brought the clothes on his back and Maria brought only a piece of luggage full of guns and ammo. So, of course, they needed some more clothes. Nakia and Maria both had a bag full of clothes by the time they went back to their apartment much to Peter's dismay. He had to try on clothes, see what fit and what didn't like he was a kid all over again. He hated it but at least he had some more shirts and pants as well as underwear. Never in his life would he have been happy about that!

When night came, Peter had another nightmare. Why wouldn't he? He had been getting them more and more frequent, never telling anyone. They were the same with the battle against Thanos, Mr. Stark dying. But there was Mysterio trying to harm Aunt May, or Ned or MJ. Whenever he tried, he saw them dying just like what had happened to Uncle Ben. 

When he couldn't go to sleep, he just laid in bed staring at the ceiling, now with the new books he had gotten he started reading. The first one he picked was _IT_ by Stephen King. He had never read horror books so this would be his first time stepping into it. Peter read the first two chapters before starting to doze off at around 

* * *

Shuri was the coolest person that Peter ever met by far. She was in the top ten coolest people that Peter made a list of, next to Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Ned, MJ, Tony, Happy, Agent Hill, T'Challa, and Doctor Strange. She stopped by to give both Maria and Peter bracelets which were an interesting thing. Peter asked Shuri questions about the technological areas of the bracelet while Maria and Bucky talked quietly in the kitchen. 

Peter could make out little of the conversation. Something about him going back to the States with Sharon and Sam, staying with the Avengers. _They must be all working together to clear my name._ But what could they be doing? He wanted to help but how could he? All he could do was stay put with Agent Maria.

"Peter?" 

"Uh?" 

Shuri smiled at him. "I asked if you wanted to come and see my lab? Maybe upgrade some stuff on your suite?"

Peter could not help but grin at the prospect of being in a lab! He agreed and ran to find his web-shooters. His suit was fine but he still wanted to do some remodification on other stuff. When he came back, Maria raised an eyebrow at him. She seemed fine with him going off to the lab. 

"Are you sure?" He asked the agent. 

Maria waved her hand. "Yes, I'm sure. I've got to check in on the Agents and the Avengers. Can't let them destroy their reputation again." He did not know if she was joking or not, he hoped she was joking. "Have a fun time, kid. Don't blow anything up, I can't pay T'Challa in damages!" She called out as he left with Bucky and Shuri.

"No promises!"

When they got to the lap, Peter thought it was the coolest place. Shuri began to play a loud pop song that thrummed through the lab as Peter wandered around starry-eyed at his surroundings. Shuri sent Bucky to the bed that reminded Peter of a check-up bed that he saw in his doctor's office many times. Shuri told him to look around but not touch if he needed to update his suite he was more than happy to do so while she fixed up Bucky's arm.

Peter just walked around not really needing to fix or update anything, he just looked.

"Wow," He said to himself, softly. There were large glass windows overlooking the mining of vibranium. Peter checked the upstares which were windows that overlooked Wakanda. 

He stayed there for a bit longer when he heard Shuri say, "-Mothertrucker!" Peter practically ran down and almost tripped on his feet. When he got there he yelled out, "ROAD WORK AHEAD!"

Shuri looked at him and Bucky groaned as the princess's smile grew. "YEAH, I SURE HOPE IT DOES!"

Both of them started cackling as they started what would be known later as the vine war of Wakanda or as Maria and T'Challa would say, "A pain and a headache." But for now, it was just a teenager laughing, care-free without the weight of what Quentin Beck did to him. For now, he was alright.

* * *

Maria hated the news so much. Over their weeks it was just to see where the investigation was pulling itself, so far they got absolutely nothing which sent relief to Maria. Nobody knew where Peter was and she was going to keep it that way. 

As she listened to the manhunt of Spider-Man, Maria was trying to catch up on the plan the Avengers and her agents were doing. They were going to California where the rest of Mysterio's team was currently hiding, scattered across the golden state. It was so easy but Maria knew not to jinx it yet. They would have to play it safe as she saw Coulson and Melinda May type their plans out to quietly get the people involved along with whatever equipment was saved from Mysterio's death. Maria told her two senior agents to only use agents as that the Avengers could not be seen trying to help Peter Parker at the moment. Doctor Strange would be dropping them off in the different parts of California where the toadies of Mysterio were at. 

Peter was doing slightly better in his new life in Wakanda but Maria was certain that the kid wasn't sleeping well. She saw the way he zoned out just now and if he doesn't curve it, it will get worse. But she didn't want to impose on the kid. She wasn't his mother or his aunt. She was an agent protecting him. If she did not help him, who will?

Looking over the plan, she thought it was soundproof. The people responsible wouldn't know that they were coming which would work in their favor. She turned off the news and put on the Bluetooth earpiece, it linked to Melinda May who was in the middle of barking orders at Coulson and their team. 

"May!"

"Hill," Melinda said and Maria could see her nodding. Coulson said a simple hello before telling everyone to go down. Melinda reported that she was up in the air in the jet ready to fly the people back to base and have them thrown in a cell. 

"Good luck, Team Andromeda and Team Antiope. We cannot afford this be heard, you all know what to do." She said to them. 

There was silence as followed by footsteps and rustling. May had informed her that they tracked three of the people down in Ireland, which is where they were. 

A boom followed as yelling could be heard and shrieking. Maria held her breath and prayed that they got it, that they got those bastards-

"Targets secured Deputy Director," Someone said and Maria let out a breath. 

"Good," She said feeling some emotions. "Get them back to the compound and start shaking them down for answers."

 _We're almost there to bring you back home kid,_ She thought to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am working on a new story, just a one-shot of Maria being a mother to Peter. It will be a new series, so look out for that in the future. As promised, more DCOM songs in the next chapter!


	5. push until you can't and then demand more (determinate, determinate)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter gets to know a bit more about Agent Maria Hill. Maria tries to help Peter. Peter talks to someone about his PTSD.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> peter parker is a lemonade mouth fan- that's just facts. what's your favorite song from the lemonade mouth soundtrack?

_"Reason why the whole world's picking us instead of them, people need a breather cause they're feeling the adrenaline,_ " Peter bopped his head while having the small apartment to himself. Maria was taking a shower after a brutal workout with Peter, well brutal for him than Maria. His back and butt still were sore and probably bruized from the number of times he fell on the mat. He began to rap alongside the song. " _Stop! Now hurry up and let us in, knock 'cause we're coming to your house and people keep on smiling with lemons in their mouth_ -"

"Peter!" Maria yelled. 

"Waaah!" Peter slipped and fell, startled at being caught mid singing and dancing to Lemonade Mouth by the agent. She chuckled and walked over to help him up to his feet. He rubbed the back of his head as the song continued blasting on his headphones. 

"I wanted to know if you wanted some lunch but maybe I'll let you dance the afternoon away instead," She said with a grin as she adjusted the towel on her head. She wore black leggings and a Canadian Hockey jersey. As she walked away the back of it read **Gilmour** with the number **93** in big bold letters in white to contrast the red jersey with a maple leaf in the back and front. 

"You want a BLT?" Maria asked as she was getting some of the ingredients on the counter. Peter said yes and went to the kitchen, headphones in but the music on pause as he helped Maria make some sandwiches for lunch. They started preparing the food before Peter asked her a question.

"So, your Canadian?" Peter asked. 

Maria nodded as she got a pan to cook some bacon. "Yep. Half-Canadian. Mom came from Vancouver and Dad was from Chicago. I was born in Chicago, moved to Vancouver when I was three then moved back to the States in Chicago when I was five, mom divorced dad, and took me to New York. She was a big hockey fan so whenever it was around that season, we would fly to Toronto or wherever the Maples were playing and go watch them." She had a sad smile on her face. "She's not with me but... yeah. That's my life story. Any questions?"

"I lost my parents when I was little too." Peter suddenly said. Maria gave him a sad smile, full of sympathy as the only one can bonding over the death of parents. They stayed silent as they put their sandwiches together. "Maples?" Peter asked once more with a cheeky grin. Maria rolled her eyes and before she could defend her team someone knocked. 

Peter went to go open it up and when he did, Sam was on the other side with Sharon and Bucky. Peter let them in. 

"Hey Maria," Sharon called out to her former boss. Maria waved in greeting as she finished putting the bacon on her sandwich. 

"You guys want some sandwiches?" Peter asked. The trio said sure and Peter and Maria found themselves making three more BLTS for their guests. "Okay, so Maples?"

"They are a good Canadian team, do not judge," Maria said as she finished making a sandwich and handed it to Sharon. 

"Canadian teams?" Sam asked amused. "What the hell did we walk into?"

Peter explained the story and once they got the details, Sam was pestering Maria about her love for hockey. "So what other teams do you root for Hill? Or is it just Canada?"

"St. Louise Blues were good. San Jose Sharks as well." Maria said. "Mostly I just root for the US Hockey Team when its time for the Olympics."

"Ouch!" Sam said in a mocking tone. "No love for your other country?"

"Never," Maria responded with a smile as she batted her eyelashes at Sam. 

Once everyone got their food, they went to the living room as Peter was going to watch a movie, he decided to have everyone watch something together. They decided to continue to watch the movie that they had begun which was Star Wars. Peter had Maria back him up on watching the film, they watched all three film sequels. _The Force Awaken_ s, _The Last Jedi_ , and _The Rise of_ _Skywalker_. In the end, Maria and Peter got into a debate over the story-arc of Kylo Ren. Maria thought it was fitting for him to die while Peter thought he should not have died and lived in Tatooine by himself, living with the ghost of his mother and father for company.

* * *

The next day, he noticed something that he had noticed the day before with Maria and Sam. They joked as did everyone but Sam seemed to have eyes for Maria. Did he look like that with MJ? Probably. 

He tried not to think more of MJ because then it spiraled to a heart-ache of missing Aunt May, Ned, Happy, Pepper, Morgan and it hurt him. So instead, he decided to see more this relationship between two adults. 

Because that's not weird, right?

Peter and Maria were reading on the couch, Maria's phone was blasting music softly not to disturb them while they were reading. She had picked the 70's station, letting it play whatever songs from that decade on automatic shuffle like the radio. It was currently playing _Don't Go Breaking My Heart by Elton John_. He was barely finishing the chapter where Patrick Hockstetter's backstory was introduced, it creeped the heck out of Peter reading that whole chapter.

"How's the book going?" Maria asked, her eyes glued to her own book. 

"Its... creepier but interesting. It sucks you in, ya know?"

Maria hummed in agreement as she turned another page. "Get any nightmares?"

The song switched as it finished. It sounded techno until the drums began, a seventies type of song. 

_Out here in the fields, I fight for my meals/ I get my back into my living, I don't need to fight/ To prove I'm right, I don't need to be forgiven, yeah, yeah, yeah_

"Uhm, no," Peter kept his eyes glued to the book as Maria shifted herself. He could feel her eyes on him. 

"Peter," She said and he finally looked up at her. Her eyes were showing determination but they were soft as they looked at him. "The nightmares... it's not from IT. Is it the battle?" He shrugged her question, which was the wrong answer for the seasoned agent.

"Peter," She now sounded more like a director of SHIELD. "Peter this isn't healthy to bottle it up. If you aren't comfortable with talking to me then I know-"

"No," He said suddenly. "Nothing's wrong. I'm fine Agent Hill."

"Peter," She knew it wasn't fine. She wasn't blind. "Peter, I'm just trying to help."

"Nothing's wrong with me. I've got to go." As if the room was on fire, he dashed out with the book in hand, barefoot and out the door. 

He wandered the halls of the palace until he came upon a small garden balcony. There he sat, looking out the horizon while trying to get his heart race down and lessen the tightness in his chest. After a while, it lessened and he could breathe normally. He was fine, he was fine, he was fine he was fine, he was fine-

"Kid, you okay?" Sam's voice cleared out the chant that had momentarily taken over Peter's mind. "Kid?"

He was fine... was he? No... he was not fine. Not really. Not since Tony died. Not since his secret identity was put out in the national media and worldwide. Not since he was deemed a criminal. Peter was not fine. Without saying anything, he shook his head while struggling to not cry. 

"What happened?" Same asked as he sat down next to Peter.

"I still see him dead," Peter did not have to explain who it was he saw dead. Sam knew. Instead, he continued talking. "I failed him. I was stupid to give EDITH to Beck and now this thing happened. I'm not-I can't."

"Hey, hey, it's okay." Sam pulled him into a hug. "We can't unsee what battles throw at us. We just have to march through it but with people who care for us by our side to help us. I think Maria just wanted to help and it's okay to say yes to help. Trust me, I help those who ask and need help whenever they come home from battles and they feel lost. You are going through so much worse and its okay to help when you breakdown, kid."

An hour later, a panicked Maria Hill found them in the garden. Sam took Maria aside while Peter still sat, holding onto the thick Stephen King book as if it was a literal life-line as the two adults talked quietly about him. No shouts of disagreement it seemed that on board with what Sam was proposing to her. The trio walked back to Maria and Peter's small apartment in the palace. 

"Let's meet up at the garden, say around..." Sam thought long and hard for a good time. "After your boot-camp with Agent Hill. If you want, I'll be more than happy to talk with you or if you want, Sharon can talk to you via satellite. Either one of us, we are here for you. So is Bucky."

Peter gave a small smile at the quip to Maria's somewhat strict regimen workout for him. Maria rolled her eyes at Sam. Peter agreed to meet Sam tomorrow for a daily check-up. He told Maria to give him some tea or warm milk to at least get Peter more drowsy and see if a doctor can prescribe him some proper medication much to Peter's chagrin. He knew they were helping and medication was to be the best option for Peter's mental health as Maria would later tell him once Sam left. 

"I'm sorry for running," Peter said shifting his feet as he used to do as a child. 

Maria ruffled his hair. "I cornered you. I'm sorry. But if you do that again, I will not hesitate to knock you out cold and drag you back limp."

"Yes, ma'am."

* * *

"Why did you frame the kid?" Asked Melinda May, stoic and with an air of _'Do-Not-Mess-With-Me'_ she stared down the quaking man. He broke down in one minute which was a personal record at best for her, as Phil would later say. He blabbed about Quentyn and their plan of revenge against their dead boss and Stark Industries by using Peter. 

"Spider-Man was Iron Man's Legacy," One of the scared people said to another agent. "One piece in the plan to destroy Tony and possibly fool SHIELD."

"What was the other plan?" Melinda pressed on. "What was the other piece?"

"His daughter! If we could not get to Parker, we were supposed to go get the little girl! But we didn't and now, everything is crumbling down."

The Avengers watched the tapes again of the interviews. Wanda grounded her teeth, itching to just go and punch one of them. Rhodey forbade it. Wanda walked away from the videos as Melinda May and Rhodey talked about options with Pepper. Pepper wanted legal action taken against some of the news anchors deliberately dragging his name. She would take it and make sure they pay. Wanda knew what it was like for her name to be dragged time and time again. 

She wondered about the young Avenger. How was he doing in Wakanda? Is Agent Hill treating him well? Sam told her that he was doing alright transitioning in hiding but there was always an anxiety in the back of her mind, an instinct from being on the run, that all the comfort in Wakanda would be pulled under Peter's feet and he would have to run to the ends of the Earth to get away from the hellhounds. She wouldn't let that happen.

There were still more people that needed to be found, more of Beck's henchmen and women that worked in the shadows to pull this off. They were still hiding in the only god knows where plotting who knows what! Rhodey had made sure to have Melinda and Phil send a few SHIELD Agents to keep security on little Morgan Stark. They were not going to take any chances. 

* * *

He found out more things about Agent Hill. 

She liked coffee with liquor (sometimes). She was badass. She old 80's movies which Peter liked (ie. Back to The Future and Ferris Buller's Day Off). She's a massive hockey fan. Maria could quote Friends like Peter could quote Spongebob. He still wasn't sure about the whole on-going Sam and Maria theory he had going on but today would be good evidence. 

"What movie are you watching?" She asked him. He had gotten back from his first-day talk with Sam. It went better than yesterday without him breaking down. Next to him, Sam groaned about Peter needing to choose before he died of boredom. He paused his search as Maria sat down next to Sam, arms crossed. 

He shrugged. 

"Don't know yet," He said to her. "Got any suggestions?"

Sam said Madea Goes To Jail but Peter had already seen that one.

Maria thought for a moment. "Have you seen the Princess Bride?"

Sam said no. Peter faintly remembered the old movie. It was Aunt May's favorites and sometimes watched it but Peter never watched it as he was usually either hanging out with Ned building Legos. He shook his head and it earned him a gaping agent. 

"No way! Really?" She asked in disbelief. She snatched the remote and before he or Sam could protest, found the movie, paid for it, and sat there with a victorious grin as both heroes were forced to watch the old 1987 cult classic. Peter got up to make popcorn and then sat back down next to Sam. All three of them watched the movie. Peter, halfway through it, liked the film. It was funny and romantic.

It did not go unnoticed by him the way Sam had his arm around Maria, it reinforced the idea that Sam had something for Maria. When the movie ended, Peter was dead asleep on the couch, not knowing what the two adults were doing. 

* * *

Maria noticed things. 

She noticed the wackiness of Peter's sleep schedule and she noticed the way Sam Wilson looked at her. She admits, she has a thing for him. He's attractive, sue her! He stayed as Bucky and Sharon were to leave for the States to keep an eye on the ongoings of the investigation. So, who's to say she did not throw her hat in the ring to get with the new Captain America?

He flirted and she flirted back quietly. They did things quietly, like this flirting. 

So when she gave him a look as the credits rolled and Peter was snoring loudly, he got it quickly. With a mischievous smile, Maria grabbed Sam's wrist, pulling him up and taking him to her bedroom without a sound. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am going to make things longer for the next chapters, so bear with me as the process of me updating will be more longer. 
> 
> thank you for the patience with this story, i can't thank you enough everyone! i hope you guys are doing well and keeping safe.
> 
> :3


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